Kalamazoo River Oil Spill Stands as the most expensive cleanup in American History

CHICAGO (July 25, 2013) - The Kalamazoo River tar sands pipeline spill cleanup stands as America’s longest-running and most expensive oil cleanup project as Michigan authorities and pipeline company Enbridge continue to scour the heavy oil from the bottom of the waterway. On the third anniversary of the million gallon spill, Natural Resources Defense Council Midwest Director Henry Henderson noted:

“Three years and nearly a billion dollars later the Kalamazoo River cleanup still is not complete after the nation’s worst inland oil spill. The mess in Michigan makes clear the significant costs and dangers that have come with our embrace of Alberta’s bottom of the barrel tar sands oil.

“Today’s anniversary is a sobering reminder of threat that reckless proposals like Keystone XL, Enbridge’s pipeline expansions and Great Lakes tanker terminals pose to the Midwest. We are already struggling with the pollution and climate impacts of existing oil infrastructure in the region, doubling down on tar sands and inviting more incidents like we saw in the Kalamazoo is dangerous lunacy.”

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 2 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.